MLB Offseason Report Cards
Grades for all 30 MLB clubs.
We’re at the point in the MLB offseason where significant signings are few and far between. All of the top free agents are off the market. Barring trades, there won’t be any notable moves for a while.
So with spring training fast approaching, it’s a good time to evaluate how front offices across the league fared this winter. Which clubs set themselves up for a strong 2023 and beyond? Which clubs are trending in the opposite direction?
Below, I listed all 30 MLB teams with their offseason arrivals and departures, followed by a letter grade for their entire body of work and a brief explanation. The grades are purely based on how their moves — or lack thereof — set them up for success or failure. If a club was already built to compete in 2023 and didn’t make many changes this offseason, they won’t be penalized for that.
Note: Only major-league moves are listed below. I may have missed some minor additions and subtractions.
Arizona Diamondbacks
Departures
RP Ian Kennedy
OF/C Daulton Varsho
OF/1B Jordan Luplow
Arrivals
OF Kyle Lewis
RP Miguel Castro
C Gabriel Moreno
3B Evan Longoria
OF Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
UTIL Diego Castillo
Grade: B+
The D’Backs still aren’t ready to compete with the upper class in the NL West, but they’ll be feisty. Evan Longoria brings veteran leadership to the clubhouse and some pop to the lineup. The Varsho-for-Moreno and Gurriel trade was a win. Missing out on a star free agent keeps them out of the A range.
Atlanta Braves
Departures
RP Kenley Jansen
RP Darren O’Day
RP Luke Jackson
SS Dansby Swanson
OF Robbie Grossman
OF Guillermo Heredia
OF Adam Duvall
Arrivals
SP/RP Kolby Allard
RP Nick Anderson
RP Joe Jimenez
RP Dennis Santana
C Sean Murphy
OF/1B Jordan Luplow
OF Sam Hilliard
Grade: B+
The Braves started their active offseason by acquiring star catcher Sean Murphy from the Oakland A’s. From there, they focused on overhauling their bullpen while continuing to lock up their talented players long-term. Alex Anthopoulos has done an incredible job, but keeping him from an A was the inability to replace Dansby Swanson with another stud shortstop. We’ll see whether that comes back to bite him.
Baltimore Orioles
Departures
SP Jordan Lyles
C Robinson Chirinos
1B Jesus Aguilar
1B Lewin Diaz
2B Rougned Odor
Arrivals
SP Kyle Gibson
SP Cole Irvin
RP Mychal Givens
C James McCann
2B Adam Frazier
OF Franchy Cordero
Grade: B-
I’m disappointed the Orioles didn’t go bigger this offseason after taking a step in the right direction in 2022. Instead of going outside the box to add premier talent, they made very minor upgrades at positions of need. That, plus the failure to sign a front-end starter, costs them.
Boston Red Sox
Departures
SP Nathan Eovaldi
SP Michael Wacha
SP Rich Hill
SP Connor Seabold
RP Matt Strahm
RP Matt Barnes
RP Josh Taylor
DH J.D. Martinez
1B Eric Hosmer
SS Xander Bogaerts
OF Tommy Pham
OF Franchy Cordero
Arrivals
SP Corey Kluber
RP Kenley Jansen
RP Chris Martin
RP Joely Rodriguez
RP Richard Bleier
RP Ryan Sherriff
RP Wyatt Mills
C Jorge Alfaro
2B/SS Adalberto Mondesi
1B/DH Justin Turner
OF Adam Duvall
OF Masataka Yoshida
OF Raimel Tapia
Grade: C
LOTS of turnover in Boston as you can see above. This team is bordering on unrecognizable after its last-place AL East finish. Only three players from the 2018 World Series roster remain (Chris Sale, Rafael Devers, Ryan Brasier) following the departures of Xander Bogaerts, J.D. Martinez, Nathan Eovaldi, and Matt Barnes.
On paper, the bullpen is much improved. The same cannot be said about the lineup, and the starting rotation is filled with question marks. There’s some upside, but right now it’s difficult to get a sense of Chaim Bloom’s direction. Does he have one? He deserves some benefit of the doubt after that surprising 2021 ALCS appearance, but there’s potential for a disastrous 2023.
Chicago Cubs
Departures
SP Wade Miley
C Willson Contreras
OF Jason Heyward
Arrivals
SP Jameson Taillon
RP Brad Boxberger
C Tucker Barnhart
1B Eric Hosmer
1B/OF Trey Mancini
SS Dansby Swanson
OF Cody Bellinger
Grade: B
The Cubs could be pretty fun to watch next season. Dansby Swanson was their blockbuster signing and he’ll fill a major need at shortstop. Cody Bellinger could prove to be a tremendous low-risk, high-reward addition. Eric Hosmer and Trey Mancini add stability to the first base position and leadership to the clubhouse. So why just a B?
Chicago could have used a front-end starter or a middle-of-the-order bat to help make up for Willson Contreras’ departure. Without either of those, this still isn’t a club built to compete in the NL Central.
Chicago White Sox
Departures
SP Vince Velazquez
SP Johnny Cueto
1B Jose Abreu
SS Elvis Andrus
OF Adam Engel
UTIL Josh Harrison
UTIL Danny Mendick
Arrivals
SP Mike Clevinger
RP Gregory Santos
OF Andrew Benintendi
OF Jake Marisnick
Grade: F
Andrew Benintendi was a solid signing for a White Sox club that desperately needed outfield help, but that $75 million deal is a massive overpay. Then there’s the Mike Clevinger disaster. The right-hander was the White Sox’ only other significant addition and he’s currently under investigation for allegations of domestic violence and child abuse. Not great!
Add that to Jose Abreu leaving in free agency, and it was an offseason to forget in Southside Chicago.
Cincinnati Reds
Departures
SP Mike Minor
SP Chase Anderson
RP Justin Wilson
RP Hunter Strickland
C Austin Romine
INF Kyle Farmer
INF Donovan Solano
INF Mike Moustakas
OF Aristides Aquino
Arrivals
SP Luke Weaver
C Luke Maile
INF Kevin Newman
1B/OF Wil Myers
2B/OF Nick Solak
Grade: C
A boring grade for a boring team that had a boring offseason. The rebuild continues in Cincinnati, just with some different names to bridge the gap to relevancy.
Cleveland Guardians
Departures
C Austin Hedges
C Luke Maile
Arrivals
C Mike Zunino
1B Josh Bell
Grade: B+
The Guardians addressed their two primary needs — catcher and first base/DH — by signing Mike Zunino and Josh Bell. Major points there. It just feels like they could have done more to further separate themselves from the pack in the AL Central. Fortunately for them, the rest of the division looks gross.
Colorado Rockies
Departures
SP Chad Kuhl
RP Scott Oberg
RP Alex Colome
SS Jose Iglesias
UTIL Garrett Hampson
OF/1B Connor Joe
OF Sam Hilliard
Arrivals
SP Connor Seabold
RP Pierce Johnson
Grade: F
Rockies owner Dick Monfort said he believes a .500 season is possible for the Rockies in 2023. This is after they won just 68 games last year and made zero moves to improve on that mark. Having the nerve to make that statement when your prized offseason addition was CONNOR SEABOLD is disgraceful.
Detroit Tigers
Departures
RP Joe Jimenez
RP Daniel Norris
RP Kyle Funkhouser
RP Andrew Chafin
RP Gregory Soto
C Tucker Barnhart
INF/OF Kody Clemens
3B Jeimer Candelario
UTIL Will Castro
Arrivals
SP Michael Lorenzen
SP Matthew Boyd
C Donny Sands
INF/OF Nick Maton
OF/INF Matt Vierling
UTIL Tyler Nevin
Grade: D+
Perhaps the under-the-radar acquisitions of Nick Maton and Matt Vierling will make me look foolish, but I don’t see much worth cheering about in Detroit right now. The offense still looks like it’ll be among the worst in the league.
Houston Astros
Departures
SP Justin Verlander
RP Will Smith
RP Josh James
C Christian Vazquez
1B Yuli Gurriel
1B/OF Trey Mancini
UTIL Aledmys Diaz
Arrivals
1B Jose Abreu
Grade: B
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The Astros have been quiet this winter outside of the addition of slugger Jose Abreu. Otherwise, they’ll rely on their plethora of intriguing internal options to fill the voids on their roster. A whopping 106 wins might not be on the table in 2023, but Houston is still set up to be one of the top teams in the AL.
Kansas City Royals
Departures
RP Wyatt Mills
RP/SP Luke Weaver
1B/OF Ryan O’Hearn
2B/SS Adalberto Mondesi
OF Michael A. Taylor
Arrivals
SP Jordan Lyles
SP Ryan Yarbrough
RP Nick Wittgren
RP Josh Taylor
RP Aroldis Chapman
Grade: C+
The Royals clearly aren’t trying to compete in 2023, so that automatically limits their grade potential here. It’s worth noting though that they could be setting themselves up to reload next offseason. If they spend big next winter to pair premier talent with their promising young guns, this grade will look silly in hindsight.
Los Angeles Angels
Departures
SP Michael Lorenzen
RP Archie Bradley
C Kurt Suzuki
INF Matt Duffy
Arrivals
SP Tyler Anderson
INF Gio Urshela
INF Brandon Drury
OF Hunter Renfroe
OF Brett Phillips
Grade: B
Look, if I were the Angels GM, I probably would have just gone all-in on selling this offseason. I would have gotten a massive haul for Shohei Ohtani before he leaves for nothing next winter. Of course, that’s pretty extreme, so I have to put my biases aside for this grade.
The B is due to the Angels filling several needs while adding much-needed depth to their roster. They should be better in 2023. The problem is they’re still probably not good enough to make a run, and Ohtani’s departure is a foregone conclusion.
Los Angeles Dodgers
Departures
SP Tyler Anderson
SP Andrew Heaney
SP Danny Duffy
SP Trevor Bauer
RP David Price
RP Jimmy Nelson
RP Tommy Kahnle
RP Chris Martin
RP Craig Kimbrel
SS Trea Turner
3B Justin Turner
OF Cody Bellinger
OF Joey Gallo
Arrivals
SP Noah Syndergaard
RP Shelby Miller
RP J.P. Feyereisen
DH J.D. Martinez
INF Miguel Rojas
OF Jason Heyward
Grade: C
The Dodgers lost a LOT of talent this offseason. While their incredible depth should help ease the pain of some of those departures, I don’t expect the same old Dodgers powerhouse in 2023. That’s an alarming amount of veteran leadership/top-tier talent headed out the door with not much coming in.
Miami Marlins
Departures
SP Pablo Lopez
RP Jeff Brigham
RP Richard Bleier
RP Elieser Hernandez
INF Miguel Rojas
3B/OF Brian Anderson
Arrivals
SP Johnny Cueto
SP Chi Chi Gonzalez
RP JT Chargois
RP Matt Barnes
INF Jean Segura
2B Luis Arraez
Grade: C+
I understand Miami’s mindset. With a surplus of arms, it was willing to trade one (Pablo Lopez) to acquire the 2022 batting champion (Luis Arraez). I just think adding one of their top prospects (Jose Salas) made that deal an overpay, especially given Arraez’s injury history, lack of pop, and mediocre-at-best defense. Not trying to knock Arraez as he’s a great hitter, I just wasn’t crazy about that particular trade for the Marlins.
There’s also the odd infield situation. Jazz Chisholm Jr. will apparently be moving to center field with the infield consisting of Arraez, Jean Segura, Joey Wendle, and Garrett Cooper. Until Chisholm proves he can play the position, I have to knock the Marlins down a peg for the roster construction.
Milwaukee Brewers
Departures
SP Josh Lindblom
RP Trevor Rosenthal
RP Taylor Rogers
RP Brad Boxberger
C Omar Narvaez
2B Kolten Wong
OF Hunter Renfroe
OF Andrew McCutchen
UTIL Jace Peterson
Arrivals
SP Wade Miley
SP/RP Bryse Wilson
RP Joel Payamps
RP Javy Guerra
C William Contreras
INF Abraham Torro
3B/OF Brian Anderson
OF Jesse Winker
Grade: B-
I like the moves Milwaukee made this winter. The trade for William Contreras should pay dividends and the Brian Anderson signing could be a steal if he stays healthy. Jesse Winker should be a fine replacement for Hunter Renfroe. I’m just underwhelmed by the lack of star power. The Brew Crew has surprised us before, so perhaps it can overcome that and still find a way to compete for the NL Central. But consider me skeptical of their unwillingness to spend.
Minnesota Twins
Departures
SP Chris Archer
SP Dylan Bundy
RP Michael Fulmer
C Sandy Leon
C Gary Sanchez
INF Gio Urshela
1B Miguel Sano
Arrivals
SP Pablo Lopez
C Christian Vazquez
INF Kyle Farmer
OF Joey Gallo
OF Michael A. Taylor
Grade: B+
I have to praise the Twins for the same reason I knocked the Marlins. Not only did they upgrade their pitching staff with Pablo Lopez, but they also added a top prospect to the Arraez deal. Of course, losing Arraez will sting, but Minnesota needed a true front-end starter and Lopez can fit that bill.
Christian Vazquez is an upgrade at the catcher position and the Joey Gallo signing could be a sneaky one with the banning of the shift in 2023. A Gallo, Michael A. Taylor, Byron Buxton outfield might be the best defensive outfield in the game.
New York Mets
Departures
SP Chris Bassitt
SP Jacob deGrom
SP Trevor Williams
SP Taijuan Walker
RP Seth Lugo
RP Mychal Givens
RP Trevor May
RP Joely Rodriguez
C James McCann
1B/OF Dom Smith
OF Tyler Naquin
Arrivals
SP Justin Verlander
SP Kodai Senga
SP Jose Quintana
RP David Robertson
RP Brooks Raley
RP Jeff Brigham
RP Elieser Hernández
C Omar Narvaez
OF Tommy Pham
UTIL Danny Mendick
Grade: A
Steve Cohen did what many MLB owners are afraid to do nowadays for whatever reason and opened his wallet. Say what you will about the guy, but he clearly has a real desire to bring a World Series to Queens and I respect the hell out of it.
By the sound of it, the Mets may have dodged a bullet by bailing on the massive Carlos Correa contract. His ankle sounds like a serious problem. As for the moves they did make, Verlander and Senga make up for the losses of Jacob deGrom and Chris Bassitt. They also re-signed Edwin Diaz, Brandon Nimmo, and Adam Ottavino while making some minor additions to address some weak spots on the roster. It’s World Series or bust for the Mets in 2023, but it won’t be easy in the star-studded NL East.
New York Yankees
Departures
SP Jameson Taillon
RP Chad Green
RP Miguel Castro
RP Aroldis Chapman
RP Zack Britton
RP Lucas Luetge
OF Andrew Benintendi
OF Matt Carpenter
UTIL Marwin Gonzalez
Arrivals
SP Carlos Rodon
RP Tommy Kahnle
Grade: B+
Re-signing Aaron Judge was priority No. 1 and the Yankees checked that off the list. On top of that, they added a true frontline starter in Carlos Rodon on a reasonable deal and brought back Tommy Kahnle to bolster the bullpen. Only thing keeping them from an A was the lack of an outfielder addition, though that could still happen before Opening Day.
Oakland A’s
Departures
SP Cole Irvin
RP Joel Payamps
C Sean Murphy
C/1B Stephen Vogt
UTIL Chad Pinder
Arrivals
SP Shintaro Fujinami
SP Kyle Muller
SP Freddy Tarnok
RP Trevor May
C Manny Pina
1B Jesus Aguilar
UTIL Aledmys Diaz
UTIL Jace Peterson
Grade: B
Expectations are low for the A’s given their refusal to spend, so that B grade is on a curve. They actually did far more than I anticipated this offseason. After trading away Sean Murphy, they splurged on a few free agents including Aledmys Diaz, Jace Peterson, Trevor May, Shintaro Fujinami, and Jesus Aguilar. They added solid big-league talent while trading away a couple of pieces for a collection of prospects to expedite the rebuild process.
Are they a threat in 2023? No, but they might be watchable. That’s really all Oakland fans can ask for until the rebuild is complete.
Philadelphia Phillies
Departures
SP Zach Eflin
SP Noah Syndergaard
SP Kyle Gibson
RP Corey Knebel
RP Brad Hand
RP David Robertson
C Donny Sands
INF/OF Nick Maton
OF/INF Matt Vierling
INF Jean Segura
Arrivals
SP Taijuan Walker
RP Matt Strahm
RP Gregory Soto
RP Craig Kimbrel
SS Trea Turner
UTIL Kody Clemens
UTIL Josh Harrison
Grade: B+
Dave Dombrowski found his star shortstop in Trea Turner, who signed an 11-year contract worth $300 million. That was the Phillies’ one major need this offseason and they addressed it. They also bolstered the bullpen with Matt Strahm, Gregory Soto, and Craig Kimbrel, though it’s certainly up for debate whether that’s a slight downgrade from Corey Knebel, Brad Hand, and David Robertson. Taijuan Walker was a fine addition to the pitching staff as well. Philadelphia is built for another deep postseason run.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Departures
SP/RP Bryse Wilson
C Roberto Perez
INF Kevin Newman
INF/OF Diego Castillo
OF Ben Gamel
UTIL Hoy Park
Arrivals
SP Vince Velasquez
SP Rich Hill
RP Jarlin Garcia
C Austin Hedges
1B Carlos Santana
1B Ji-Man Choi
OF Andrew McCutchen
OF/1B Connor Joe
Grade: B+
Dare I say the Pirates might be kind of fun this season? The Andrew McCutchen homecoming will be a blast by itself, but I also am a fan of the Carlos Santana and Rich Hill additions. All three veterans should bring a sense of stability to the club. Altogether, considering Pittsburgh’s usual unwillingness to spend, I’d consider this offseason a success.
San Diego Padres
Departures
SP Sean Manaea
SP Mike Clevinger
RP Craig Stammen
RP Austin Adams
RP Pierce Johnson
C Jorge Alfaro
1B Josh Bell
1B/OF Wil Myers
OF Jurickson Profar
UTIL Brandon Drury
Arrivals
SP/RP Brett Honeywell Jr.
SP/RP Seth Lugo
DH Nelson Cruz
SS Xander Bogaerts
INF/OF Matt Carpenter
OF Adam Engel
Grade: B
The Xander Bogaerts signing helped to form arguably one of the scariest lineups in baseball, but let’s face it, 11 years and $280 million is asinine. I’m also wary about the rotation depth and whether Seth Lugo can hold his own as a starter all season long. While there are question marks, AJ Preller deserves credit for going for it. The Padres have a real chance to overtake the Dodgers for the NL West crown.
San Francisco Giants
Departures
SP Carlos Rodon
RP Jose Alvarez
RP Shelby Miller
RP Gregory Santos
INF Tommy La Stella
1B Brandon Belt
3B Evan Longoria
Arrivals
SP Sean Manaea
SP Ross Stripling
RP Taylor Rogers
RP Luke Jackson
OF Mitch Haniger
OF Michael Conforto
Grade: C+
Losing the Aaron Judge sweepstakes and having the Carlos Correa deal go sideways hurt. Not that they had much control over the latter, but it was just icing on the cake for a letdown offseason in San Francisco. The outfield is set up to be much better in 2023 but the absence of Carlos Rodon at the top of the rotation will be noticeable.
Seattle Mariners
Departures
SP Matthew Boyd
SP/RP Luke Weaver
RP Erik Swanson
C Curt Casali
1B Carlos Santana
2B Adam Frazier
INF Abraham Toro
OF Mitch Haniger
OF Jesse Winker
OF Kyle Lewis
Arrivals
RP Trevor Gott
2B Kolten Wong
INF Tommy La Stella
OF Teoscar Hernandez
OF AJ Pollock
Grade: C+
Did the Mariners do enough to clinch a playoff spot for the second consecutive year after having not reached the postseason since 2001? That’s certainly up for debate. There isn’t much to write home about other than the Teoscar Hernandez and Kolten Wong trades. They missed out on adding another big bat to a lineup that still might be missing another piece or two. Meanwhile, the rest of the AL West has improved.
St. Louis Cardinals
Departures
SP Jose Quintana
RP Alex Reyes
C Yadier Molina
OF Corey Dickerson
Arrivals
C Willson Contreras
Grade: B-
The Cardinals have been one of the quieter teams this offseason, much to the chagrin of fans in St. Louis. Aside from assuring that Adam Wainwright and Nolan Arenado will stick around, their only other notable move was signing slugging catcher Willson Contreras. That move makes the Cardinals lineup even more terrifying and the club is favored to win the NL Central again in 2023. Still, it feels like they could have done more to assert themselves as World Series contenders.
Tampa Bay Rays
Departures
SP Ryan Yarbrough
SP Corey Kluber
RP Brooks Raley
RP Nick Anderson
RP Javy Guerra
RP JT Chargois
C Mike Zunino
1B Ji-Man Choi
OF Kevin Kiermaier
OF David Peralta
Arrivals
SP Zach Eflin
Grade: B-
The Rays are going all-in on their internal options. They let some veterans go this offseason but will depend largely on the young talent already on the roster: Wander Franco, Tyler Glasnow, Jeffrey Springs, etc. Recently, Springs, Pete Fairbanks, and Yandy Diaz were signed to extensions.
Zach Eflin’s three-year, $40 million deal marked the largest free-agent contract in Rays history, which is pretty wild. Knowing Tampa Bay’s wizardry with pitchers, he’ll somehow find a way to be a Cy Young contender in 2023. It’s like clockwork.
Texas Rangers
Departures
SP Kohei Arihara
SP/RP Kolby Allard
RP Matt Moore
RP Dennis Santana
C Kevin Plawecki
2B/OF Nick Solak
OF Kole Calhoun
UTIL Charlie Culberson
Arrivals
SP Jacob deGrom
SP Andrew Heaney
SP Jake Odorizzi
SP Nathan Eovaldi
Grade: B
The Rangers have needed pitching for several years now. It’s safe to say they’ve finally addressed that issue, overhauling their rotation with deGrom, Heaney, Odorizzi, and Eovaldi. While I admire their willingness to take a big swing, I question whether that particular mix of arms was the best investment.
deGrom has been plagued by injuries. Eovaldi is a workhorse when healthy, but he comes with his own injury concerns. Odorizzi and Heaney are solid additions to the back end of the rotation but don’t really move the needle toward making Texas a legit contender.
Toronto Blue Jays
Departures
SP Ross Stripling
RP David Phelps
C Gabriel Moreno
OF Teoscar Hernandez
OF Raimel Tapia
OF Bradley Zimmer
OF Jackie Bradley Jr.
OF Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
Arrivals
SP Chris Bassitt
SP/RP Zach Thompson
RP Erik Swanson
RP Chad Green
1B Brandon Belt
OF/C Daulton Varsho
OF Kevin Kiermaier
Grade: B+
The Blue Jays disappointed 2022 after entering the season with World Series aspirations. They responded by making some intriguing additions, specifically right-hander Chris Bassitt and outfielder Daulton Varsho. Bassitt gives Toronto’s rotation great upside while Varsho provides exceptional outfield defense and a much-needed left-handed bat. The Blue Jays outfield defense should be among the best in the league with Varsho, Kiermaier, and George Springer.
Washington Nationals
Departures
SP Anibal Sanchez
SP Joe Ross
RP Will Harris
RP Steve Cishek
DH Nelson Cruz
1B Luke Voit
2B Cesar Hernandez
Arrivals
SP Trevor Williams
1B Dom Smith
3B/1B Jeimer Candelario
OF Stone Garrett
OF Corey Dickerson
Grade: C
The Nats remain in rebuilding mode, so it would be silly to grade too harshly one way or another. Their offseason has consisted of small moves to acquire low-risk, potentially high-reward major league talents and high-upside minor leaguers. It’ll be a last-place season in Washington, but that was expected.